Carol Chomsky
Encyclopedia
Carol Chomsky was an American
linguist and education specialist who studied language acquisition
in children.
Chomsky was born in Philadelphia as Carol Doris Schatz on July 1, 1930. She married Noam Chomsky
in 1949, the two having known each other since she was five years old. Her mother had been a teacher at a Hebrew school where his father was the principal. She was awarded a bachelor's degree in French from the University of Pennsylvania
in 1951.
The couple spent some time living in HaZore'a, a kibbutz
in Israel
. Despite her interest in becoming a mechanic or driving a tractor, at the time of the Chomsky's stay in 1953 "the kibbutz wasn't quite ready for that. It was way before there were even words about women's rights" according to Judith Chomsky
, wife of Noam Chomsky's younger brother.
She earned a doctoral degree in linguistics from Harvard University
in 1968, having attended the school in order to ensure that she would be able to make a living in the event that her husband would be sent to jail for his active opposition to the Vietnam War.
Chomsky's best-known work was her 1969 book The Acquisition of Syntax in Children From 5 to 10 which investigated how children develop an understanding of the underlying grammatical structure of their native language and how they use this skill to interpret sentences of increasing complexity as they get older. Despite earlier scientific beliefs that children complete their acquisition of syntax
by the age of five, Chomsky's research showed that children continue to develop the skills needed to understand complex constructions beyond that age.
As part of her research to understand how children develop the ability to read, she developed a method in the late 1970s called repeated reading, in which children would read a text silently while a recording of the text was played. The child would repeat the process until the text could be read fluently without the tape. Research showed that four readings accompanied by a recording could be enough to provide added reading fluency for most children. More than 100 studies have been performed on the technique, with most finding statistically significant improvements in reading speed and word recognition.
She served on the faculty of the Harvard Graduate School of Education
from 1972 until 1997.
Chomsky died at age 78 on December 19, 2008 of cancer
in her home in Lexington, Massachusetts
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
linguist and education specialist who studied language acquisition
Language acquisition
Language acquisition is the process by which humans acquire the capacity to perceive, produce and use words to understand and communicate. This capacity involves the picking up of diverse capacities including syntax, phonetics, and an extensive vocabulary. This language might be vocal as with...
in children.
Chomsky was born in Philadelphia as Carol Doris Schatz on July 1, 1930. She married Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
in 1949, the two having known each other since she was five years old. Her mother had been a teacher at a Hebrew school where his father was the principal. She was awarded a bachelor's degree in French from the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
in 1951.
The couple spent some time living in HaZore'a, a kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. Despite her interest in becoming a mechanic or driving a tractor, at the time of the Chomsky's stay in 1953 "the kibbutz wasn't quite ready for that. It was way before there were even words about women's rights" according to Judith Chomsky
Judith Chomsky
Judith Brown Chomsky is an American human rights lawyer. She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1942, and is the sister-in-law of MIT professor Noam Chomsky....
, wife of Noam Chomsky's younger brother.
She earned a doctoral degree in linguistics from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1968, having attended the school in order to ensure that she would be able to make a living in the event that her husband would be sent to jail for his active opposition to the Vietnam War.
Chomsky's best-known work was her 1969 book The Acquisition of Syntax in Children From 5 to 10 which investigated how children develop an understanding of the underlying grammatical structure of their native language and how they use this skill to interpret sentences of increasing complexity as they get older. Despite earlier scientific beliefs that children complete their acquisition of syntax
Syntax
In linguistics, syntax is the study of the principles and rules for constructing phrases and sentences in natural languages....
by the age of five, Chomsky's research showed that children continue to develop the skills needed to understand complex constructions beyond that age.
As part of her research to understand how children develop the ability to read, she developed a method in the late 1970s called repeated reading, in which children would read a text silently while a recording of the text was played. The child would repeat the process until the text could be read fluently without the tape. Research showed that four readings accompanied by a recording could be enough to provide added reading fluency for most children. More than 100 studies have been performed on the technique, with most finding statistically significant improvements in reading speed and word recognition.
She served on the faculty of the Harvard Graduate School of Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education
The Harvard Graduate School of Education is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University, and is one of the top schools of education in the United States. It was founded in 1920, the same year it invented the Ed.D...
from 1972 until 1997.
Chomsky died at age 78 on December 19, 2008 of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in her home in Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,399 at the 2010 census. This town is famous for being the site of the first shot of the American Revolution, in the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775.- History :...
.